Notes:

Disclaimer: This is not mine. See first chapters for details.

Rating: PG13+

Other: This story is AU. Readers Replies at the bottom.

Chapter 8: The Family

            'If this is about the mission,' said Kurt, as he and Logan entered their room once again, 'then you shouldn't worry. You don't need any real briefing or special preparation, you're just muscle, like Spyke. No offence meant.'

            'This isn't about my place,' Logan grunted, pushing Kurt down onto the bed with one hand, ensuring he had the elf's full attention 'it's about yours.'

            'Vas?'

            Logan sat down besides Kurt, 'why are you on this mission?' he sighed.

            'I was there for about a year, I know some of the geography, and defenses of that place. Besides, someone has to keep the others out of mischief.'

            Kurt winked at this, but Logan could see the worry, the trouble in his eyes.

            'But they won't,' said Logan earnestly, 'Kurt… this is going to turn into a bloodbath. Do you really want to be a part of this?'

            The smile faded from Kurt's mouth, the grief in his eyes, for a moment, became even more pronounced.

            'Nein,' he whispered, 'but I have to go anyway, for other reasons.'

            'Such as…' prompted Logan, 'what happened to you there? Is this about revenge?'

            'Revenge? No. Revenge just breeds more pain and suffering, I'd never want that. No, it's about hope.'

            Logan said nothing, he merely stared at Kurt, his eyes willing the elf to give out more details. Kurt tried to fight that gaze, but found himself giving out, he resigned himself to the tale.

            'Fein,' he snapped, a little resentful, 'you want what happened, I'll tell you. See, I lived with my family, the Romani, in Germany for many years, then one day I was found out by the authorities. I'm a second generation mutant, and that makes me valuable, especially to the breeding centers. They'd just love to have their own little gang of third-gens. I was so valuable that I was worth the destruction of my entire Romani tribe by government forces. When they'd finished… finished killing them, they took me to the New York Breeding Center where they tried to… tried to breed me. Took them almost a year, but they succeeded. I learnt of it just before my mother and sister, my genetic family, rescued me, almost eight months ago. That rescue mission cost my mother her life, and my sister a lot of grief. I hate that place, more than anything, but I… I have a child in there, and I have to save it. I have to go back.'

            Logan was silent for a long while after this, unsure what to say.

            'If we go in there,' he said at last, 'if you go on this mission, to rescue your kid, you may have to kill.'

            Kurt was shaking his head even as Logan spoke, 'nein,' he muttered, 'I won't.'

            'You might have to,' Logan repeated, 'it's going to be a kill or be killed situation out there, kid.'

            'I don't care,' returned Kurt, his eyes blazing in determination, 'I won't kill. If I did that, if I sunk to their level, I'd become like them. No better. I'd have let them win. I won't let that happen. My faith in humanity and God has been what been keeping me alive for the last few years and I won't lose that. I won't kill.'

            'Not even to save you kid?'

            Kurt turned away from this question, and remained silent.

            Eventually he stood up, 'rest, recover your strength, I'll get some equipment from the stores, make preparations. I'll be back soon.'

            With this he teleported out, leaving Logan alone in the small room, pondering his companion and the mission they were about to undertake.

            For about an hour Logan was happy to rest and consider recent events.

            Recent events, however, were far from restful, so, unable to fine any sort of sleep, Logan abandoned this pursuit, and Kurt's quarters, to do some solo exploring.

            If Asteroid M hadn't been a hive of activity before, it was now. Every mutant there toiled over some task or another, the range of powers and abilities in use was jaw-dropping, even for Logan. He guessed that, whilst some were indeed busy preparing for the upcoming mission, others were merely working to forget their anxiety, and the dreadful threat that loomed over them all.

            If that information had been correct, and something wasn't done to stop it, then every mutant, both on earth and around it, would be dead within the month.

            They wouldn't even be able to fight for their survival.

            At lunch he met with Kurt again, who was rather flustered at his departure from their room.

            'Ease up, kid,' Logan had chuckled, 'I'm a grown man, and I've survived alone for years, I'm more than capable of looking after myself.'

            Kurt smiled self consciously at this, and apologized, before they went to eat a lunch which was, thanks to their assignment, of somewhat higher quality than their last one, though it still included cabbage. As they ate and talked, Logan found himself glad that the uncomfortable stress and vague anger from their previous conversation had evaporated. Perhaps Kurt had accepted Logan's words, perhaps he had put it behind him, or perhaps he was just trying to pretend it had never happened, either way he seemed to hold no grudges.

            After eating they parted once again, Kurt to a short, private meeting with Psy, and Logan to 'get himself kitted up.' He was given directions to the armory where Rogue was handing out equipment for the upcoming mission.

            After several wrong turns, a few questions from passers-by, and general directional problems in the twisting metal corridors, he reached his destination.

            The armory was a large, impressive room, shelves covering every wall, tables laid out in the center, and on all of these were guns, armor, and other electrical equipment Logan couldn't pretend to understand.

            He entered just as another member of the mission, Spyke, was leaving, having completed his own business with Rogue.

            For a moment the two mutants stared at each other, both barring the others way.

            After a few seconds, Spyke gave a curt nod, and stepped aside, allowing Logan to pass on into the armory, before leaving himself.

            'You worried about having him on the mission?' asked Rogue, seeing the wary look in Logan's eyes.

            Logan only grunted, his answer obvious.

            'Don't be,' said Rogue, 'Psy and Magneto have already talked to him about that. Besides, Spyke can be quite a bastard, but he's got some of his priorities straight. He knows this mission is important, he's not going to use it as any sort of excuse for petty rivalry.'

            Logan only grunted again, not entirely convinced.

            'So,' Rogue continued, 'you've come here to get yourself kitted up, right?'

            'Suppose I have,' responded the bladed man, 'not that I need it. Got all the weapons I need right here.'

            There was the familiar 'shinkt' sound as his adamantium claws unsheathed themselves from his calloused knuckles.

            'That's real impressive sugar,' said Rogue, 'but I don't reckon most of the guards will invite you to fisty-cuffs. They're gonna be armed with guns, and they'll be plenty of them. I don't care how many hits you take before you fall, you will fall before you get close enough to use them fancy knives of yours.'

            'Alright then, give me a gun, "sugar"'

            Rogue smiled at the jibe, before handing him a largish, but light, gun. Fairly long in the nozzle, small in the body, various buttons were spewed across it's dark, metallic form.

            'Meet the X15,' said the southern belle, 'not the most powerful of our stock, but it's the one most of the Breeding Camp guards will be using, so when the power runs out, you'll know how to use one of their weapons too.'

            'When the power runs out?'

            'This is gonna be a long, hard fight, hon. These use laser beams, rip through skin tissue like a knife.'

            'Deadly?'

            'Like any gun, though it depends where you hit, of course. It is possible to just maim with them. You familiar with their usage?'

            'No,' sighed Wolverine, 'technology has come a fair way since I escaped Weapon X. What happened to good, old, bullets?'

            'Magneto,' chuckled Rogue, 'the government learned pretty quick how useful it was to combat the Master of Magnetism with iron and steel, so they switched to lasers when and where they could. Now, do you want a quick course on how to use this thing?'

            Logan nodded, and for the next half hour Rogue went though the various operations and controls of the gun until he felt comfortable with its use.

            'Nice piece of kit,' he commented, after blowing a sizable hole in a target Rogue had set up, 'is Kurt getting one?'

            'I wish,' sighed Rogue, 'but he won't take one. He's still a pacifist, still won't kill, not even after all he's seen… all he's been though. I suppose it's the reason why I love him so much… and the reason why I don't expect him to come back from his mission.'

            Such sadness came into her eye then that even Logan felt moved. e He reached out one, gnarled hand, to touch her comfortingly on the shoulder.

            'You really do care for him, don't you?' he said.

            Rogue nodded, 'yeah,' she whispered, 'I love him as sister, as mother… hell, I think part of me might even love him as a boy. If you know what I mean.'

            'Mother?' echoed Logan, more concerned with that part of the statement than any other.

            Rogue sighed, 'You know the story of Kurt's rescue from the Breeding Center?'

            'In brief,' replied Logan.

            'Well, we were lucky, security was lax back then, and both me and our mother had powers useful for subterfuge. She ca- could change shape, and I can absorb people's memories, abilities, even powers through touch. It's why I wear gloves. Any how, we managed to get Kurt out, but while we were escape we got ambushed by some guards. We managed to take them out, but our mother got wounded, critically so. She knew she was dying, and that we'd need all the help possible to escape, she asked me to touch her. I did and I got her powers. Problem was, whether it was because of the length of contact, or the situation, I ended up getting her powers permanently, and her memories. Hell, I've even got some of her personality floating around up here.'

            'So she's still with you,' Logan muttered, 'still part of you.'

            Rogue nodded, 'she's still here. She loves Kurt as much as I do, loves him for his peaceful, good nature, something she never had, but she knows that it'll kill him. We both do, and we'd both give anything to change it, and anything to keep it as it is. If Kurt doesn't kill, he'll be killed. But if he kills… then he'll no longer be Kurt. Either way, we lose the one we love.'

            Just then, the armory door opened once again, and Kurt bounded cheerfully through, oblivious to the sadness within.

            'Speak of the devil,' said Rogue, her sadness dissolving from her eyes like dew in the morning sun.

            'Hay, no snide comments on my looks!' mock scalded Kurt, he would have said more, perhaps, had Logan not thrown a gun at him.

            Kurt instinctually caught it with his tail, but frowned when he saw what it was.

            'Logan,' he said, 'I'm not carrying one of these, you know how I feel about-'

            'Don't care,' he interrupted, 'kid, just because you have a gun, don't mean you have to use it. But it gives you an option. So take it, it'll make us all feel a lot happier.'

            'But Logan,' said Kurt, his voice almost whining, 'I can't let myself-'

            'Kurt!' Logan snapped, 'if you don't take that gun along on this mission, then I'm not going either! Take it, for your sister's sake, if nothing else.'

            Kurt gave a deep, heartfelt sigh, and nodded, 'but I don't even know how to use one of these things,' he muttered, looking at the weapon as if it was a slab of festering meat.

            'Not a problem,' said Logan, 'your sister here knows all about them, and there isn't much too it, either. Just point and shoot, preferably in the direction of your enemy.'

            'Alright then,' said Kurt, 'meet back at our room in an hour, ja?'

            'Sure,' said Logan, taking his leave before Kurt changed his mind. Taking one last, look back, he caught a brief smile from Rogue, as she began to tutor her brother in the gun's use. It was all the thanks he needed.

            If what he'd done was worthy of any sort of thanks, that is.

Reader's Replies:

Aw… only two of you now… me very sad… Still, the previous chapter wasn't the most exciting, Nor was this one, really… but the next one… well, it's super large and super good! Anyway…

De-Femme-o-da-Night: Whee! A new reader! Welcome! Welcome! Have hugs, have chocolate! SO glad you're enjoying this! So… now you know why Rogue's blue… is it a good enough reason for you? Hope you like the following chapter to! I love making people happy!

Telle: Glad you're still here… wish I knew what else to say… here, have a hug!

Come one, peeps, I'd like more than two reviews… well… I think I'll have more success with the next chapter. Speaking of which…

NEXT CHAPTER: Right, now that we've done with the happy, fluffy bits of this story, let's get onto darker things (; That's right, the mission starts and everything is hanging in the balance! RNR!